Does the Bears not signing Kareem Hunt make it more likely Jordan Howard plays out the last year of his contract in Chicago? — @jtbcubs

I don’t think Hunt, had the Bears signed him, would have sealed Howard’s fate from the start. Hunt is facing a lengthy suspension, and it remains to be seen when he will be able to play for the Browns. I do believe one of the Bears’ top goals this offseason will be to shake up the depth chart at running back. Not landing Hunt — and I don’t know if the Bears actually pursued him — doesn’t preclude the team from pursuing this. There are going to be plenty of options in the draft, and general manager Ryan Pace also could consider going another route to add talent. Howard easily hit the proven performance escalator in his rookie contract, bumping up his 2019 salary to $2.045 million. That’s not a huge number and the Bears could keep him around even if they bring in someone else. I believe the Bears will take a close look at several ways to add talent at the position.

Disappointed about the Kareem Hunt signing, but that may never have happened for the Bears. If Ryan Pace engages John Dorsey for a running back trade who would you prefer, Nick Chubb or Duke Johnson, and what would compensation have to be to get him? — @masonmdubbswest

The Browns have a wealth of running backs, and while Dorsey has ties to Hunt as the GM who drafted him in Kansas City, the Browns’ depth chart at running back made it somewhat surprising they landed the NFL’s leading rusher from 2017. It was a low-cost move with the downside being almost exclusively tied to public relations. That being said, I can’t imagine the Browns will want to erode their depth until Hunt is on the field and in action, and it’s possible he will be suspended for the first half of the season, maybe longer. So, unless Dorsey gets an offer he can’t refuse, he’s probably not going to trade one of the running backs right away. Johnson probably would be the odd man out if the Browns, who traded Carlos Hyde during last season, decide to deal a back. The Browns signed Johnson, 25, to a three-year contract extension last June, a deal that pays him $2.3 million this season, $4.1 million in 2020 and $5.15 million in 2021. But Johnson never really got going last season. A year after catching 74 passes, he caught only 47 balls for 429 yards (9.1 average) with three touchdowns. He also received a career-low 40 carries as Chubb, a second-round pick last year, flourished in the lead role.

“Duke Johnson is a fine football player,” Dorsey said during his news conference Monday after Hunt’s signing was announced. “What it does is you have three very quality, really four quality individuals. You have three veterans in there now. I don’t think it makes him expendable yet. You have to go back and research your options and see moving forward what’s best for the organization.”

If and when Hunt is eligible, and assuming he doesn’t land himself in more trouble, the asking price for Johnson might not be prohibitive. Johnson’s greatest skill set is as a receiver out of the backfield, and that would make him and Tarik Cohen somewhat repetitive. So I’m not sure Johnson is a great fit.

With limited cap space and some younger players to sign, do you see Kyle Long as a potential restructure or cut? I like Kyle, but the injuries are piling up and he’s one of the top paid guards in the league. — @matt22880192

This is one of the bigger questions the Bears face. They need to evaluate Long’s play in 2018, when he was on the field for eight regular-season games, and then they need to project how they believe he will perform in 2019. It’s not about past production but future performance, and it’s a little cloudy because Long has been hit with a slew of injuries, the most significant the ankle injury he suffered in 2016. Long is due to earn $7 million this season ($6.9 million base salary and a $100,000 workout bonus) and has a cap figure of $8.5 million. Would the Bears ask the 30-year-old to take a pay cut and perhaps make some of the money available to him in the form of per-game roster bonuses? Would they consider cutting him altogether? Cutting Long would leave $3 million in dead cap space, so the savings would be $7 million in cash and $5.5 million in cap space. They would need to have a replacement plan in mind if they move on from Long, and they don’t appear to have another starting right guard on the roster. This is definitely one to keep an eye on.

What was the deal with Taquan Mizzell taking snaps away from Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen? — @jgrythefireguy

There have been multiple questions about this, and while I agree it seemed Mizzell was forced onto the field a little bit in the second half of the season, we’re talking about a very small percentage of plays. Mizzell was on the field for 66 offensive snaps over the final nine regular-season games. He was the only running back on the field for a total of 18 snaps. He was on the field with Cohen for 28 snaps (nearly half of the 66), so it’s not like he took a lot of playing time from him. Mizzell was on the field with Cohen and Howard for 16 snaps. Howard and Mizzell were on the field together for two snaps. Mizzell was on the field with fellow running back Benny Cunningham for one snap, and on one snap Mizzell, Cohen and Cunningham were all on the field. Mizzell got a total of nine carries and was targeted with 10 passes, catching eight of them. So I don’t think there’s a lot here. He didn’t really take many snaps away from the other backs and he certainly didn’t take many touches from them. Mizzell was performing well in practice and coach Matt Nagy wanted to create some game opportunities for him.

Is there anything requiring teams to kick a field goal 7 yards from the line of scrimmage? If not, why don’t teams reduce the risk of a block by backing it up another yard or two? Maybe you can’t risk being short for the 50-plus yard tries but from 40 or 43? — @cthompsonlogan

There is no rule stipulating the distance behind the line of scrimmage the ball must be placed on field-goal attempts. The vast majority of field goals in the NFL are placed 8 yards behind the line of scrimmage, while it seems 7 yards remains the rule of thumb in the college game. There are several factors for why the ball is not placed deeper on field-goal tries. For starters, long snappers are accustomed to one distance and they are so good at their craft, most of them can snap the ball so the laces are in the exact same spot when the holder catches the ball. That makes the operation much smoother as the holder can simply place the ball down for the kick instead of placing it down and having to rotate the ball to get the laces facing the goal posts. So if you start mixing up the distance of the snap, that’s going to make it difficult to impossible for the long snapper to have that feel and touch needed for a perfect snap every time. Second, the feeling is that by being deeper, it would make the angle for rushers coming off the edge easier to rush and potentially block a kick. While they would have a slightly greater distance to cover, keep in mind the snap would take longer to get to the holder. Edge rushers really have to turn the corner in a hurry now to have a chance for a block at 8 yards. With the holder at 8 yards, good teams can get the entire operation completed in 1.25 to 1.35 seconds from snap to the time the ball leaves the kicker’s foot. That doesn’t put a lot of pressure on the line as it only has to block for a short period of time. Move the distance back and the operation takes more time and the line has to block for a longer period of time. Finally, missed kicks are spotted at the point where the kick is attempted. So if you move back more than 8 yards, that would give the opponent even better field position after missed kicks. Many experienced snappers and holders believe the colleges should also go back to 8 yards because some of the less proficient college kickers consistently have low trajectories on their kicks, which makes them easier to block.

For a little history, I placed a call to Steve DeOssie, who is considered the godfather of modern long snappers. DeOssie’s skill as a long snapper allowed the Cowboys to revolutionize the punting game in the mid-1980s. Before DeOssie, long snappers typically were not responsible for blocking a man in the punt game. That would leave nine players to block 10 rushers. When DeOssie proved he could effectively snap, pick up a block and cover downfield, the Cowboys began using gunners on the outside, which made it eight-on-eight blocking at the line. DeOssie said that the variance in the depth of the snap typically was dictated by the holder.

“I always dealt with different holders,” said DeOssie, who is a Patriots analyst for WEEI-AM in Boston. “When I was the Giants, (Jeff) Hostetler was good (at) about 7¾ yards. That worked out perfect because the way he caught the ball, it made the laces go right where we wanted them. When (Scott) Zolak was with the Patriots holding, he wasn’t as good as Jeff, but once Scott got it down we noticed that he put the spot at 7½ yards, that’s when he got the laces forward and he didn’t have to make much of an adjustment. The only time we adjusted was when the holder needed to get another quarter revolution on the snap or something. The less they have to turn the snap, especially if you had a new holder, it was easier to adjust the back a half-yard or up a half-yard, whatever. The basic spot for us was 7¾ yards. But about four, five years ago, I noticed that it’s a solid 8 now. I can’t ever remember it being 8 when I was snapping. I always had kickers that didn’t care. It was always important to get it right with the holder.”

I just saw that Matt Bryant got released from the Falcons. I know he’s 44 years old so wanted to know how much you think he has left in the tank. — Jeff J., Parts Unknown

It didn’t take long for a couple of questions about Bryant’s availability to hit the Mailbag inbox. The Falcons informed Bryant last week that he would be released with two years and $7 million remaining on his contract. The veteran turns 44 in May and has made it clear he intends to continue his career. Bryant connected on 20 of 21 field-goal tries in 2018. He missed three games with a hamstring injury. I don’t think you can rule anyone out when you consider options for the Bears in the soon to be post-Cody Parkey era. However, it’s important to note Bryant hasn’t handled kickoff duties since 2008 when he was with the Buccaneers. Unless the Bears plan to find a punter who can do double duty or Bryant can handle kickoffs once again, he’s probably not in play for them. Bryant hasn’t kicked for a team that plays in a cold-weather outdoor stadium since he began his career with the Giants in 2002-03. While he remains reliable on field goals, my guess is the Bears’ first choice would be someone younger than Bryant with experience handling kickoffs. The more options the Bears have to sort through, the better.

The Bears have gone through more safeties than quarterbacks. Why all the negative press on Adrian Amos being re-signed by Bears? Countless websites, Twitter, newspapers. I don't get it. The Bears need to sign Amos. They finally have two studs. Pay the man. — @dportjerome

I don’t know if Amos has gotten negative press. He had a nice season for the Bears and he played well in 2017. He has been durable too. But he’s not a playmaker in the secondary like Eddie Jackson. Amos is a box safety, and I don’t know what kind of price tag teams are going to put on him. I would not rule out the possibility that he returns. There are a lot of experienced safeties about to hit the open market, so supply and demand could lead to a handful not getting what they’re hoping for in free agency. You can’t pay all of your guys, and eventually you see the good teams let players exit when their rookie contracts expire. They find ways to plug the holes. Cornerback Kyle Fuller is the fifth-highest-paid player at the position. Prince Amukamara is tied for 18th when looking at annual average. If the Bears pay to retain nickel cornerback Bryce Callahan, they’re going to have even more money tied up in the position and they’re a year away from needing to pay Jackson. I think you need to have at least one of your top five defensive backs on a rookie contract. Hope that makes sense. It’s not a knock on Amos.

Do you see Earl Thomas replacing Adrian Amos? — @rough_cut85

As I have said multiple times in recent weeks, I don’t see the Bears handing out a big contract to a strong safety. They’re going to have to load up to pay Eddie Jackson before the 2020 season and it doesn’t make a lot of sense to have premium money in both safety positions when you’re paying both starting cornerbacks good money and face the prospect of having to pay a nickel cornerback like Bryce Callahan. Thomas is coming off a broken leg suffered last season, but he’s still going to be seeking premium money.

Jared Goff was often confused and unable to solve the Patriots defense in the Super Bowl. As a young quarterback that’s not a big surprise. What can Mitchell Trubisky and Matt Nagy learn from Goff’s performance that might accelerate Trubisky’s development? — Michael H., South Barrington

Goff looked a little bit better against the Patriots in Super Bowl LIII than he did against the Bears at Soldier Field. The Patriots certainly borrowed a little bit from the Bears in how they chose to attack Goff and the Rams. Goff was excellent in the play-action game this season and with the running game taken away by the Bears and the Patriots, that created issues for the Rams offense. He’s very good with his first read, and both defenses consistently took that away. There isn’t a shortcut to getting experience against different coverages and pressures or unscouted looks. It’s a matter of experience, something Goff has one more year of than Trubisky. The Bears should be in a better place offensively in 2019 and a full offseason to refine and polish instead of installing should make Trubisky and coach Matt Nagy more comfortable.

Will Sam Acho come back and provide depth on the defense or do you think he will be a cap casualty? — @heimer

This is another guy the Bears could consider replacing if they’re looking to trim some corners with the salary cap. Acho is due to earn $2.125 million this season and has a cap hit of $2.375 million. They’d carry only $250,000 in dead cap space if they were to release him. It’s a fair question because Acho missed nearly all of last season with a torn pectoral muscle. The Bears value him for leadership and his play on special teams, but they signed him to this contract before they added Khalil Mack and sometimes teams need to make tough decisions.

What are the chances Kylie Fitts and Isaiah Irving develop enough so that they can give the Bears quality pass-rushing depth in 2019? — Rich S., Barrington

I have gotten a couple of questions recently about pass rushing depth and I think the Bears have a wealth of it. The pass rush comes from more places than just the outside linebackers. The Bears had eight players with three sacks or more last season and 15 players had at least one sack. Do they have any studs after Khalil Mack at outside linebacker? No. But Leonard Floyd came on during the second half of the season and provided he remains healthy, he gives them a ton of athleticism and provides flexibility for defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano. How many teams have three terrific outside linebackers? The Bears get quality pass rush from Akiem Hicks, and inside linebacker Roquan Smith can have more than the five sacks he posted as a rookie, depending on how Pagano chooses to use him. Irving and Fitts should have a chance to compete for minor roles, but the Bears will have plenty of depth to pressure the quarterback whether they pan out or not.